How Fast Does Smoking Imagery Work?

Dear BR,
How long do I have to listen to the guided imagery before it starts to
work? I’m a chain smoker who is going to start listening to the CD for
smoking cessation. Will I feel something immediately or is it
cumulative?
Tom

Dear Tom,
I wish I had one neat answer for you, but I don’t. Most likely the
answer is yes to both questions - yes, you will feel something different
immediately, and yes, the effects are cumulative. It depends on the
strength of your addiction and the strength of your wiring for
responding to an immersive, right brain technique like guided imagery.

Some people find the Stop Smoking imagery
so calming and diverting that they find they can quit and stay that
way without too much discomfort. They use little else. The cumulative
effects then keep them comfortable and motivated to stay the course
until the psychological and physical pulls are under better control.

Others need to muster everything they can bring to bear and require a
multimodal approach. They use the imagery in conjunction with a
nicotine patch, a personal coach or buddy, and/or a highly structured,
behavioral program. Yoga and breathing meditation exercises can also be
recruited to help.

So it really depends. In addition to my own imagery CD, there is a great self-hypnosis, Smoke No More
by Emmett Miller, as well as Stop Smoking by David Illig. And an excellent, complete behavioral program, complete with manual and CD Break Your Smoking Habit,
by the legendary guided imagery trainer, David Bresler . But no matter
what you use, it’s all going to depend on your sticking to your plan
and, when you get that urge to smoke, using the methods at hand vs.
borrowing that cigarette. There’s no substitute for commitment to your
intention, my friend!

Psychotherapist, author and guided imagery pioneer Belleruth Naparstek is the creator of the popular Health Journeys guided imagery audio series. Her latest book on imagery and posttraumatic stress, Invisible Heroes: Survivors of Trauma and How They Heal (Bantam Dell), won the Spirituality & Health Top 50 Books Award